NST Leader: How Immigration can go beyond dismissals to fix recurring corruption

The Immigration Department says 77 officers have been dismissed since 2022. Yet corruption, abuse of authority, smuggling and breaches of standard operating procedures persist.

What this says is that dismissals, while necessary, are not enough. The fact that dozens of officers have been removed since 2022 suggests that punitive action seems reactive rather than preventive.

The question is not merely whether corrupt officers are caught, but why such misconduct continues to rear its ugly head despite repeated scandals, investigations and reforms. The “flying passports” affair is one such case.

An investigation by the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission found that an Immigration officer at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport had entered a passenger’s details into the MyIMMS without the passenger being at the counter.

According to media reports, 20 officers have been dismissed and 21 others faced disciplinary action over “flying passport” activities. Despite this, the problem persists at KLIA and Johor counters, with arrests being reported every now and then.

“Flying passport” activities aren’t just about corruption or breach of procedures; they are a national security threat because they often evolve into organised criminal activities rather than isolated acts of wrongdoing.

Greedy enforcement officers, working with syndicates, are making it difficult for authorities to keep track of who is in the country by falsifying entry and exits.

An enforcement agency, especially the Immigration Department, can’t afford to have such officers wearing its uniform. Theirs is a betrayal of the most serious kind.

The number of officers dismissed or disciplined doesn’t curb recurring corruption or misconduct. Because punitive actions are after the fact. What the Immigration Department needs is a root-and-branch reform, as senior criminologist Datuk Dr P. Sundramoorthy has suggested.

To him, the dismissals point to deeper integrity vulnerabilities within the department. And the only way to address integrity issues in the long term is, in his view, for the Immigration Department to opt for structural reform.

A reimagining of the institution as a whole, if you will. But the starting point must begin with who gets recruited into and who stays in the department. All it takes is one bad apple to spoil the barrel.

The recurring dismissals tell us that the barrel has more bad apples than it can bear. Getting rid of them should be the first item on its reform agenda. Others that should be reimagined are internal oversight and rotation systems; whistleblower protections; lifestyle and asset monitoring.

These and others must result in a durable culture where integrity is rewarded, not merely enforced through fear of punishment.

The dismissals should not merely be viewed as proof the system is working, but as a warning sign that the system still requires repair.

It is ultimately about restoring trust in institutions that form the backbone of national governance and security.

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المصدر: New Straits Times